This invention relates generally to containers for scoopable products and more particularly, to a novel composite package consisting of an outer paperboard box and an inner, thin-walled, plastic jar supported within the box and especially designed for holding scoopable products such as margarine, shortening, pickles and potato salad, bird seed, pet food, cat litter, pool chemicals, and the like.
Scoopable products such as margarine and shortening are most commonly supplied to the commercial food industry, in large rigid plastic pails or buckets of about two to six gallons in size. The pails are usually circular in cross section, slightly tapered inwardly from top to bottom to accommodate the injection molding process by which they are normally produced. The pails usually have a large open top sealed by a removable lid.
Although these type pails have found wide use in commercial and industrial applications, they do suffer from a number of disadvantages. Because of the substantial wall thickness of the plastic material, the price of the pails is very high. Also adding to the overall cost of using those type pails is the inefficient space utilization of the pails during shipping, handling, and storage because of their round and tapered shape. Further, the lids placed on the open top of the pails are often difficult to apply and remove, sometimes requiring a rubber mallet to beat the top on, and a pry bar of some type to remove the top. Additionally, the pails are difficult to dispose of and have been known to present a drowning hazard to small children should they become filled with water.
Another type of container which has been suggested for use with scoopable products is a "bag-in-box" which includes an outer paperboard box lined with an inner, flexible, plastic bag. This type of container also suffers several disadvantages. For example, the bag and the box are normally shipped to a customer as separate components and they must be assembled together by the customer before the package is filled. Further, the bag itself or the bag in the box has no convenient resealing system, which creates problems once the bag is opened. Also, the products in the container, for example, margarine or shortening, can be trapped in the folds or wrinkles of the bag and scraping the sides of the bag to try to scoop out all of the product can cause the bag to shift, collapse, or rupture, none of which is desirable.
Thus, a need exists for a lower-cost, space-saving, easier-handling package for holding scoopable products. Applicant and the assignee of this application are familiar with prior art composite packages consisting of a thin-walled plastic bottle in an outer paperboard box for holding pourable liquid products, with the top of the bottle provided with a small spout through which the liquid may be poured from the bottle and an integrally molded handle for holding the package during the pouring operation. However, prior to this invention, those types of composite packages have not been known for use with scoopable products.